http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport...d/news-story/2cbf3b681d1181398cf0d8761ca50164
Nathan Peats’ future with Gold Coast Titans unclear with contract unresolved
TRAVIS MEYN, The Sunday Mail (Qld)
42 minutes ago
NATHAN Peats may have raised his bat with a century of tackles in 48 hours but his future at the Gold Coast Titans still remains unclear.
Peats backed up his massive Origin II effort for NSW with another 80-minute performance for the Titans in Friday’s 26-14 win against the woeful Wests Tigers.
Peats notched 53 tackles for NSW on Wednesday at ANZ Stadium in the Blues’ 18-16 loss and produced another 50 against the Tigers at Campbelltown.
His inspirational effort, along with Jarryd Hayne’s brace of tries,
helped the Titans snap a four-match losing streak and keep their faint finals hopes alive.
But Peats and the Titans are yet to find common ground to keep the feisty hooker on the Gold Coast beyond this season.
The parties are at loggerheads over the financial terms of a three-year contract extension but if there was any doubt about Peats’ value to the Titans it must surely have been put to bed with his recent efforts.
“Nathan’s effort to play back-to-back 80 minutes is fantastic,” coach Neil Henry said.
“He didn’t want to come off. We had Pat Politoni to replace him but he refused to come off the field. He stayed out there. It’s testament to what he’s like.”
Peats, 26, is a crucial cog in the Gold Coast’s rebuilding plans.
Fellow playmakers Ashley Taylor, Kane Elgey and Hayne are contracted until the end of 2018 and the Titans can ill-afford to be looking for a new hooker.
The Titans are hopeful of reaching a resolution with Peats before Origin III on July 12 and Gold Coast captain Ryan James said he was the ultimate teammate.
“The Origin boys (Jarryd Hayne, Jarrod Wallace and Peats) made a massive effort,” he said. “Peatsy has made 100 tackles in three days. We want players like that who want to come out and play for us.”
Despite the win the Titans are still in the bottom three on the ladder and facing a monumental task to qualify for back-to-back finals appearances.
They must win at least seven of their final nine matches and Henry said a win against the Dragons at Cbus Super Stadium on Friday was crucial.
“It’s a very important little period. The Dragons have been playing some good footy,” he said.
“If we’re going to sneak up the ladder a little bit and be a chance to make the top eight we need to get a bit of momentum. We need to string a few (wins) together.
“We’ve had a couple of disappointing results but they’re behind us. We’ll look forward. If we start getting a bit of continuity in our team then we can win some games.
“We’re realists about what’s ahead of us but it’s one week at a time and we need to stack up a couple of wins.”
